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Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Banded iron formation
Department of

Mineral Sciences

Mineral Sciences Icon
Scientists in the Department of Mineral Sciences seek to understand the evolution of the Earth and Solar System by studying samples from environments ranging from the mantle to mine drainages, from volcanic arcs to the asteroid belt. The department is home to world-class collections of rocks, minerals, meteorites, and gems, as well as the instruments our scientists use to study these specimens in detail.
Featured Content

Global Volcanism Program

The Global Volcanism Program seeks to document, understand, and disseminate information about global volcanic activity. Its weekly and monthly reports provide scientists with a record of ongoing eruptions they can use to guide research and hazard management related to volcanoes.
Volcano erupting with lava streaming down the side. A forest is at its foot and the eruption is reflected in a dark lake.

Using the Collections

Our collection of over 600,000 specimens is available for study by researchers worldwide. Find specimens and request a loan using the links below.

Access the Collections

Collections Overview

Samples Requests & Loan Policy

Reference Materials
Rock Creek sapphires
Search the collection

Instrumentation

Four element maps from the electron microprobe
Electron microprobe
Backscatter image of pyrite crystals
Scanning electron microscope
Melt inclusions in an olivine wafer
Fourier-transform infrared spectrometer
Research Support Facilities

Seminar Schedule

Spring 2019 seminar schedule
Date Title Speaker
Feb 6 What we know & don’t know about 1I/ʻOumuamua, the 1st detected Interstellar object in the Solar System Carey Lisse
JHU Applied Physics Lab
Feb 13 No seminar (Tuscon Gem & Mineral Show)  
Feb 20 No seminar (scheduled seminar moved to Feb. 27)  
Feb 27 Using Seismo-Infrasonic Observations to Quantify Eruptive Processes Kathleen McKee
Carnegie DTM
Mar 6 Eruptions: The Final Countdown Megan Newcombe
Carnegie DTM
Mar 13 The fate of deeply subducted volatiles  Michael Walter
Carnegie GL
Mar 20 No seminar (Lunar & Planetary Science Conference)  
Mar 27 'Top-down' precursory volcanic seismicity – Implications for magma ascent and eruption forecasting  Diana Roman
Carnegie DTM
Apr 3 No seminar scheduled  
Apr 10 To be announced Douglas Hemingway
Carnegie DTM
Apr 17 No seminar scheduled  
Apr 24 To be announced Daniel Viete
Johns Hopkins University

Seminars are held on the fourth floor of the east wing of NMNH and run from 10 to 11 a.m. unless otherwise noted. Smithsonian personnel who are not members of the department can buzz in at the entrance to the department in the fourth floor elevator lobby prior to 10 a.m. Visitors without SI badges should call the department from the visitor services office, located at the 10th and Constitution Ave entrance to the museum, by dialing Phyllis McKenzie at x31808 or Ioan Lascu at x31815.